What Do Inspectors Flag Most in Older Atlanta Homes?

What do inspectors flag most in older Atlanta homes? We looked for a published count of inspection findings in Atlanta homes and did not find one, so any Atlanta ranking would be a guess. What can be answered is what an inspector is asked to report, and which items federal agencies tie to the year a home was built: lead-based paint, aluminum wiring, lead pipes and asbestos.

An older home has had more years of weather, use and repair, and an inspection report sets those years down in one document. So the question worth asking before you list is which lines you already know about, have receipts for, and have made a decision on before anyone else reads them.

This guide is from Andrew and Jassey Nguyen. NRG Nguyen Realty Group is a real estate team with Keller Williams Realty Peachtree Road helping homeowners in Atlanta, Georgia prepare an older home for a buyer's inspection. Our guide to updating an older East Cobb home before selling sorts what to repair and what to leave.

What is a home inspector asked to report?

The American Society of Home Inspectors, known as ASHI, publishes a Standard of Practice for inspectors who subscribe to it. ASHI membership is voluntary, so ask your inspector which standard they work to. As the page read on November 4, 2026, it says members have approved a revised standard, and that the version shown stays current until an implementation date.

Under that version, the written report states "those systems and components inspected that, in the professional judgment of the inspector, are not functioning properly, significantly deficient, unsafe, or are near the end of their service lives." It also carries recommendations to correct or monitor those items, or items needing further evaluation, an explanation of deficiencies that are not self-evident, and anything the standard covers that was present but not inspected, with the reason why.

That sentence is the closest thing to an answer we can give you. Four kinds of finding, weighed by one person's judgment, on one day. ASHI says the inspection reports on condition "at the time of the home inspection."

Which parts of an older home does the standard reach?

The standard has ten sections for the home itself: structural components, exterior, roofing, plumbing, electrical, heating, air conditioning, interiors, insulation and ventilation, and fireplaces and fuel-burning appliances.

Outside, the list includes vegetation, grading, surface drainage and retaining walls likely to affect the building adversely, along with wall coverings, decks and steps. On top, it covers roofing materials, roof drainage, flashing, skylights, chimneys and roof penetrations. Structurally, it includes the foundation and framing.

Indoors, the standard asks the inspector to describe the interior water supply, drain, waste and vent piping materials, the water heating equipment, the amperage rating of the electrical service, and "The predominant branch circuit wiring method." Those descriptions put materials and methods in writing even when nothing has failed.

The inspector is not required to determine "The remaining life expectancy of systems and components." A roof or a water heater near the end of its service life is a matter of professional judgment, and a dated invoice can give that judgment something to work with. Do you know the year of your roof, your water heater and your heating and cooling equipment? Could you put your hand on the receipt?

What does the standard leave out?

Several things an owner of an older home may wonder about sit outside it.

Under ASHI's general exclusions, the inspector is not required to determine "The presence of environmental hazards including, but not limited to, allergens, toxins, carcinogens, electromagnetic radiation, noise, radioactive substances, and contaminants in building materials, soil, water, and air." The same list excludes "The presence of plants, animals, and other life forms and substances that may be hazardous or harmful to humans including, but not limited to, wood destroying organisms, molds and mold-like substances."

The interiors section says the inspector is not required to inspect "Paint, wallpaper, and other finish treatments." The plumbing section lists interior drain, waste and vent systems, and says the inspector is not required to inspect septic and other sewage disposal systems. Inspections under the standard "Are not technically exhaustive," and they are not required to identify concealed conditions or latent defects.

The standard also says it does not limit an inspector from including other services, so one report can reach further than another. Our guide to the due diligence period in Georgia names specialty inspections a buyer may add, including a sewer scope and a termite inspection. We are not citing a source here for a particular pipe material, an older electrical panel or the sewer line out to the street, so treat those as questions for your own inspector.

Which items are tied to a home's age?

Four come with a year, or a span of years, from the agency that wrote about them.

Lead-based paint. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's real estate disclosure page says, "Lead-based paint is usually not a hazard if it is in good condition. However, deteriorating (peeling, chipping, chalking, cracking, or damaged) lead-based paint is a hazard and needs prompt attention." Its disclosure rule reaches most pre-1978 private housing, public housing, federally owned housing and housing receiving federal assistance. The page lists exceptions, among them foreclosure sales and housing a certified inspector or risk assessor has tested and found free of lead-based paint.

The page says federal law puts these steps on sellers and real estate agents, among others, before a homebuyer signs: the pamphlet "Protect Your Family From Lead In Your Home," any known information about lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards in the home, all available records and reports on them, and a "Lead Warning Statement." Homebuyers get a 10-day period for a paint inspection or risk assessment, which the parties may mutually agree in writing to lengthen or shorten and which homebuyers may waive. A signed copy of the disclosures is kept for three years after the sale is completed, and electronic delivery has conditions of its own. Our guide to the seller's property disclosure in Georgia shows where this fits among your other paperwork.

Aluminum wiring. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's Publication 516, dated June 2011, says, "Homes built before 1965 are unlikely to have aluminum branch circuit wiring. Electrical cables installed between 1965 and the mid 1970s in new homes, in additions, and as part of rewired/new circuits may contain aluminum wiring."

CPSC says cable with aluminum conductors is marked "Al" or "Aluminum" on the jacket, and that those markings are visible in unfinished basements, attics or garages. If you cannot tell and suspect aluminum, it points to a qualified electrician for the determination, and adds, "If your home has aluminum wiring that has not been remediated, CPSC recommends a permanent repair of the connections, as described in the following sections."

Lead pipes. The EPA's page on lead in drinking water says, "Lead pipes are more likely to be found in older cities and homes built before 1986." To learn about your service line, the page points you to your water utility, and says a licensed plumber may be able to help if the utility does not have that information.

Asbestos. The CPSC's page on asbestos in the home says, "However, until the 1970s, many types of building products and insulation materials used in homes contained asbestos." Its list of products that might have contained asbestos includes steam pipes, boilers and furnace ducts insulated with an asbestos blanket or asbestos paper tape, and resilient floor tiles. It also says, "The mere presence of asbestos in a home or a building is not hazardous," followed by, "The danger is that asbestos materials may become damaged over time." And: "Usually the best thing is to leave asbestos material that is in good condition alone."

Those sentences lean on words like "may," "more likely" and "usually," and they speak to a whole country's housing. A build year tells you where to look. It tells you nothing certain about your home.

Is radon an older-home question?

The EPA's answer is no. Its Home Buyer's and Seller's Guide to Radon, revised March 2024, says, "Any home can have a radon problem. This means new and old homes, well-sealed and drafty homes, and homes with or without basements."

It still belongs on your list. The EPA's county table of radon zones puts Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties in Zone 1, which it labels highest potential, where it says average indoor radon levels may be greater than 4 picocuries per liter. The same page says, "The map should not be used to determine if a home in a given zone should be tested for radon," and, "All homes should be tested for radon."

For a seller whose home has not been tested, the guide says, "Have a test taken as soon as possible. If you can, test your home before putting it on the market." It says to test in the lowest level of the home that could be used regularly, including a level you do not use now but a buyer might. It recommends fixing the home if the level is 4 picocuries per liter or higher, and says levels below that still pose a risk. In Georgia, UGA Cooperative Extension runs a radon site with testing instructions and a Georgia radon map.

How do I get ahead of the report, step by step?

Treat these steps as guidance to fit to your home.

1. Find the year the home was built, and the year of every addition or rewiring you know about.
2. Start one folder for receipts, invoices, warranties and permits, and note the date of the roof, the water heater and the heating and cooling.
3. Look for permit history. In Cobb County, the county's residential permitting page says, "Find the jurisdiction for any address in Cobb County using this Cobb County map application," and links the map, so you can see which office to ask. Elsewhere, start with the building office for your address.
4. Walk the ten sections of the ASHI standard with a notepad, and write down what you already know is worn, leaking or repaired.
5. Look at the four dated items above. Check for peeling paint if your home predates 1978, read any visible cable markings, contact your water utility about the service line, and leave suspected asbestos undisturbed.
6. Test for radon, following the EPA's checklist, or hire a qualified tester.
7. Decide whether you want a pre-listing inspection.
8. Next to each item, write your decision: repair it, keep the record ready, or leave it for a buyer to weigh.
9. Read your seller's disclosure with a Georgia real estate attorney, with the folder open.

Should I get a pre-listing inspection?

It is one option. An inspector you hire writes a report ahead of the listing, and you choose what to do with it before any contract sets a date.

Weigh one thing first, with your attorney: how a report you hold changes what your disclosure has to say. Our disclosure guide raises that tradeoff, since the form asks what you know. A buyer can still hire an inspector of their own.

What happens once a buyer's inspector writes it down?

That part belongs to your contract and your attorney. Before you sign, ask your attorney what your contract requires of you once a request arrives, and by what date.

Our guide to what repairs Georgia sellers have to make after an inspection walks through a request item by item, and the folder you built gives you something to answer it with.

What mistakes can an owner of an older home avoid?

Taking the length of a report as a grade. A long report tells you how much one inspector wrote down.

Assuming a clean general inspection settles everything. Paint, radon, mold and wood-destroying organisms all appear in the standard's exclusions, in those words or in broader ones.

Treating the build year as the finding. A home from 1970 may or may not have aluminum wiring, and an addition from that span may have it where the original house does not.

Disturbing old materials before you know what they are. Scraping paint on a pre-1978 home or pulling up old floor tile can wait until you have read what the EPA says about lead paint and what CPSC says about asbestos flooring.

An example

This is an example, not a real client.

Say an owner plans to list a home built in 1971, with a room added a few years later. The folder holds a roof invoice and little else, so the owner reads the water heater's label for its date and adds a note.

In the unfinished part of the basement, the cable markings are hard to read. The owner calls a qualified electrician, who finds aluminum on the branch circuits. The owner has the connections repaired by a method CPSC recommends and files the invoice.

Because the home predates 1978, the lead paperwork goes into the packet. The owner has no lead records and brings that to a Georgia real estate attorney, along with a question about one line on the disclosure. A radon test goes in the lowest level, and the result joins the folder.

The owner decides against a pre-listing inspection. When a buyer's inspector later describes the wiring method in a report, the invoice is already in the owner's hands. What the buyer asks for next is still open, and the contract and the attorney take it from there.

Frequently asked questions

Does an older home fail an inspection? The ASHI standard describes a written report on condition, and we found no pass or fail score in it. What a buyer does with that report is the buyer's decision.

Does a home inspector check for lead paint? Under ASHI's standard, the inspector is not required to inspect paint or to determine the presence of environmental hazards. The EPA says a homebuyer concerned about lead-based paint may hire a certified inspector, and it offers a professional locator.

Do I have to fix what an inspector flags? Your contract and what you agree to in writing shape that answer, so bring it to a Georgia real estate attorney.

Before anyone opens the attic door

An older home has a long record, and you are the person closest to it. Gather what you can, look at what you can see, and bring the rest to people qualified to answer it, before a buyer's inspector arrives.

NRG Nguyen Realty Group is a real estate team with Keller Williams Realty Peachtree Road helping homeowners in Atlanta, Georgia prepare an older home for a buyer's inspection. Our team can walk the home with you, help you build the folder and talk through what comes next.

Send us a message: nrgmovesyou.com/contact

Or book a 15-minute discovery call with our team: schedule a call

Andrew and Jassey Nguyen

NRG Nguyen Realty Group

Real Estate Agents in Atlanta, GA

678-743-1586

nrgmovesyou.com

This article is general information, not legal, health or engineering advice. Your contract controls, so talk with a Georgia real estate attorney about your disclosure and your sale, and with qualified professionals about your own home.